Go West and Make Your Place with Swisher’s John Evans

John Evans had a long career in manufacturing before coming to commercial real estate at Swisher. He realized that whether you’re making books or helping property owners and businesses create spaces and communities, it’s not about who you know – it’s about who you can get to know.

With that in mind, John encourages his clients and colleagues to look for opportunities outside of the well-known downtown Ann Arbor. Chelsea, Dexter and Manchester each offer communities, cultures and opportunities that are unique from Ann Arbor and each other. These once bedroom communities have walk-able downtowns, cafés, breweries and national industries that draw young families and professionals from all over. John thrives on digging into each community. He invests his time extensively on boards and commissions to learn each area and meet everyone in town. He enjoys strolling into shops on Main Street in Dexter to hear the news from friends instead of on a screen.

John is invested in the communities that he serves. He built his home and raised his children in Dexter. Jeff Evans, John’s son, is also an agent at Swisher. They team up on projects to bring two lifetimes of knowledge and two unique points of view ensuring that every opportunity is covered. Now, a third generation is enjoying Dexter at the summer concert series, the smell of fresh doughnuts from Dexter Bakery, Hudson Mills and of course Dexter Cider Mill in the fall.

John also spends a lot of time on the west side of Ann Arbor. As vacancy goes down and prices go up downtown, the Jackson Rd. corridor is developing its own center of activity. John sees that retail, light industry, residential and entertainment are coming in the right mix to create a vibrant west side Ann Arbor area.

After 16 years in commercial real estate and 61 years in the getting-to-know-people business, John still meets someone new every week.

“Knowing a lot of people is half the battle in making it in the commercial real estate business”. – John